U.S. patent application number 15/342108 was filed with the patent office on 2017-05-04 for surface surveying device for determining 3d coordinates of a surface.
This patent application is currently assigned to LEICA GEOSYSTEMS AG. The applicant listed for this patent is LEICA GEOSYSTEMS AG. Invention is credited to Burkhard BOCKEM, Jurgen DOLD, Thomas HARRING.
Application Number | 20170122736 15/342108 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54427605 |
Filed Date | 2017-05-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170122736 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
DOLD; Jurgen ; et
al. |
May 4, 2017 |
SURFACE SURVEYING DEVICE FOR DETERMINING 3D COORDINATES OF A
SURFACE
Abstract
Some embodiments include a surface surveying device, in
particular profiler or 3D scanner, for determining a multiplicity
of 3D coordinates of measurement points on a surface, comprising a
scanning unit and means for determining a position and orientation
of the scanning unit, a carrier for carrying the scanning unit and
at least part of the means for determining a position and
orientation, and a control and evaluation unit with a surface
surveying functionality. The carrier is embodied as an unmanned
aerial vehicle which is capable of hovering and comprises a lead,
the latter being connected at one end thereof to the aerial vehicle
and able to be held at the other end by a user, wherein the lead is
provided for guiding the aerial vehicle in the air by the user and
the position of the aerial vehicle in the air is predetermined by
the effective length of the lead.
Inventors: |
DOLD; Jurgen; (Sempach,
CH) ; HARRING; Thomas; (Baar, CH) ; BOCKEM;
Burkhard; (Rieden AG, CH) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
LEICA GEOSYSTEMS AG |
Heerbrugg |
|
CH |
|
|
Assignee: |
LEICA GEOSYSTEMS AG
Heerbrugg
CH
|
Family ID: |
54427605 |
Appl. No.: |
15/342108 |
Filed: |
November 2, 2016 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B64B 1/40 20130101; G01S
17/89 20130101; G01S 7/4808 20130101; B64C 2201/148 20130101; B64C
2201/027 20130101; B64C 39/024 20130101; G01S 17/42 20130101; G01S
7/4811 20130101; G01S 7/4972 20130101; G01S 17/86 20200101; G01C
15/006 20130101; F03D 17/00 20160501; B64C 2201/123 20130101; H04N
5/2257 20130101; B64C 2201/022 20130101; G01S 7/003 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G01C 15/00 20060101
G01C015/00; H04N 5/225 20060101 H04N005/225 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 3, 2015 |
EP |
15192815.7 |
Claims
1-15. (canceled)
16. A surface surveying device, for determining a multiplicity of
3D coordinates of measurement points on a surface, comprising a
scanning unit for optically scanning the surface, said scanning
unit comprising a transmission unit for emitting optical, coherent
and collimated measurement radiation, a deflection apparatus for
scanning guidance of the measurement radiation over the surface in
at least one deflection direction, means for registering the
relative deflection direction in each case, and a detector for
detecting the measurement radiation reflected by a respective
measurement point, means for determining a position and orientation
of the scanning unit, a carrier for carrying the scanning unit and
at least part of the means for determining a position and
orientation, a control and evaluation unit with a surface surveying
functionality for controlling the scanning unit and for determining
the 3D coordinates of the measurement points on the basis of the
respective deflection direction and a distance value derived by
means of detected measurement radiation, characterized in that the
carrier is embodied as an unmanned aerial vehicle which is capable
of hovering and comprises a lead, the latter being connected at one
end thereof to the aerial vehicle and being able to be held at the
other end by a user, wherein the lead is provided for guiding the
aerial vehicle in the air by the user and the position of the
aerial vehicle in the air is predetermined by the effective length
of the lead, said length, and the lead is electrically conductive
and serves for energy supply and/or control and/or data signal
transmission to and/or from parts of the surface surveying device
situated in the air.
17. The surface surveying device according to claim 16, wherein the
means for determining the position and orientation are embodied to
actively determine the position and orientation for the purposes of
obtaining position and orientation values as storable data.
18. The surface surveying device according to claim 16, wherein the
means for determining the position and orientation are embodied to
continuously passively determine the position and orientation for
stabilizing the flight of the aerial vehicle.
19. The surface surveying device according to claim 16, wherein the
means for determining the position and orientation have, on the
carrier side, sensors for continuously measuring an acceleration
and/or rate of rotation and/or magnetic alignment, specifically an
inertial measurement unit, and at least one camera for continuously
recording images of an image series within the scope of a
camera-based independent localization and/or receivers for
continuously receiving position reference signals, GNSS signals,
and/or pseudolite signals, and the control and evaluation unit is
embodied for carrying out an algorithm specifically on the basis of
a Kalman filter, for continuously calculating the position and
orientation in real time, on the basis of the continuously
established data from the sensors and the camera and/or
receivers.
20. The surface surveying device according to claim 19, wherein if
the camera is present for continuously recording images within the
scope of the camera-based independent localization, the algorithm
is embodied, by having structure-from-motion or SLAM algorithms, to
determine position and orientation of images in the image series on
the basis of resection with the aid of surface points which are
registered in at least two images of the image series, wherein the
surface points are selected for resection by means of
feature-extraction algorithms and/or tracking algorithms.
21. The surface surveying device according to claim 16, wherein:
the surface surveying device has a wired or wireless interface for
connecting an external user unit, a smartphone, or tablet.
22. The surface surveying device according to claim 16, wherein:
the alignment of the aerial vehicle is also predeterminable by the
user by means of the lead.
23. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein: raw
data and/or 3D coordinates of surveyed measurement points are
transferable to a user unit, by means of a data signal transfer
through the lead, in such a way that, on the basis of the 3D
coordinates, a 3D point cloud is generable and graphically
displayable on the user unit still during surface surveying.
24. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
aerial vehicle is passive.
25. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
aerial vehicle has at least one drive means and/or control means
for actively adapting the position and/or alignment which is
predetermined by the effective length of the lead, for optimized
alignment of the scanning unit onto the surface to be surveyed,
wherein the aerial vehicle is embodied as an aerostat or
multicopter.
26. The surface surveying device according to claim 23, wherein the
active adaptation of the position and/or alignment is carried out
on the basis of control commands of the user, wherein the control
commands are issued by means of a user unit, specifically a
smartphone or tablet and/or by multi-touch and/or by movement of
the user unit.
27. The surface surveying device according to claim 23, wherein the
active adaptation of the position and/or alignment is carried out
on the basis of routines for semiautonomous inherent movement of
the aerial vehicle programmed into the control and evaluation
unit.
28. The surface surveying device according to claim 23, wherein the
active adaptation of the position and/or alignment is carried out
on the basis of control commands of the control and evaluation unit
which are based on current measurement values from the sensors of
the aerial vehicle.
29. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
control and evaluation unit has a gesture control functionality
such that control commands are output to the aerial vehicle and/or
the scanning unit on the basis of recorded movement images of hand
movements of the user, wherein the carrier has a camera for
recording the movement images.
30. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
connection of the lead to the aerial vehicle is embodied as a
control module such that a control command is able to be issued by
the user to the aerial vehicle, for actively changing the position
and/or alignment, and/or scanning unit, for starting and/or
completing a scanning process, by a change in a state of the lead
which is controlled by the user.
31. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
surface surveying device has a further surface measuring unit, an
infrared camera and/or thermal imaging camera, in addition to the
scanning unit, wherein there is linking of 3D coordinates, with the
measurement data from the further surface measuring unit within the
scope of the surface surveying functionality
32. The surface surveying device according claim 16, wherein the
aerial vehicle has a reserve energy source.
33. A method for determining a multiplicity of 3D coordinates of
measurement points of a surface using a surface surveying device,
the method comprising: point-by-point, spatially displaceable,
optical scanning of the measurement points of the surface by means
of optical, coherent and collimated measurement radiation with a
defined deflection direction; deriving distance values on the basis
of detected reflected measurement radiation; and determining 3D
coordinates on the basis of the distance values and deflection
directions.
34. Method according to claim 33, wherein a 3D point cloud is
generated on the basis of at least some of the 3D coordinates still
during the scanning, wherein a graphical display of the 3D point
cloud is output on a display and/or there is an automatic
identification of particularly relevant regions of the 3D point
cloud, wherein, specifically, there is a graphical display of the
particularly relevant region or regions on a display and/or there
is automatic second scanning of the particularly relevant region or
regions using the surface surveying device.
35. A non-transitory computer program product, stored on a machine
readable medium comprising program code for carrying out the method
according to claim 33.
Description
[0001] The invention relates to a surveying device comprising a
scanning unit for determining a multiplicity of 3D coordinates of
measurement points of a surface according to the preamble of Claim
1, a method for determining 3D coordinates according to Claim 12
and an unmanned aerial vehicle which is capable of hovering for use
as a carrier of a scanning unit in accordance with Claim 1
according to Claim 14.
[0002] Surveying devices for registering topographies of an object
to be surveyed, e.g. a building or terrain, for example for
surveying, testing or documentation, are known e.g. as scanners or
profilers. By way of example, PCT/EP2008/009010 describes an
apparatus which is able to quickly and dynamically measure
distances using a moving measurement beam. Applications are simple
rotational scanners or profilers aligned to the perpendicular. A
surveying device for three-dimensional surveying of an object in
each case registers the spatial position of a surface point of the
object, i.e. the 3D coordinates thereof, by virtue of emitted laser
radiation being diffusely reflected by the object surface and the
distance to the targeted surface point being measured on the basis
of diffusely reflected laser radiation. To this end, the surveying
device has a scanning unit with a laser beam source, a deflection
apparatus for swiveling the laser radiation, registering means for
registering the diffusely reflected laser radiation and a detector
or rangefinder. This distance measurement is linked to angle or
directional information of the laser emission such that the spatial
position of the registered point can be determined from these items
of distance and angle information and the surface of the object can
be surveyed continuously. Such surface surveying devices according
to the prior art allow a user to register large surfaces and
objects with relatively little time outlay--depending on a desired
point-to-point resolution--completely and, optionally, with
additional object information, wherein target points may be
recorded at a very high rate, e.g. of several hundred thousand
points per second. Hence, the distances to a multiplicity of points
are able to be registered within a short period of time in a manner
dependent on the respective scanning angle. A 3D point cloud is
generable by such a surveying of a multiplicity of points, the 3D
point cloud representing the three-dimensional nature of the object
surface by means of a set of points with defined point positions in
a common coordinate system. The point-to-point resolution of the
registered object points and the resultant point cloud is set by
the speed with which the laser beam is swiveled over the surface
and by the scanning rate. By way of example, the resolution is 1.0
mm on a 100 m measurement path in the case of laser scanners.
[0003] By way of example, WO 97/40342 describes a method which
records a topography by surveying devices set up in a stationary
manner. For these devices, a fixed setup point is selected, which
serves as a basis for a scanning process effected by motors such
that the recording or scanning location (as position of the
scanning unit relative to the scanned object) therefore remains
unchanged during the scanning. The three-dimensional spatial
information of the respective surface point is derivable by way of
the distance to the measured point, the angle position at the time
of the measurement and the known location of the apparatus. Here,
the scanner or profiler systems, in particular the rangefinders
thereof, are specifically designed for the object of registering
topography and scan a surface by moving the scanning unit or by
changing the beam path along one axis (profiler) or two axes
(scanner).
[0004] Other methods employ mobile surface surveying devices, which
scan a surface to be registered by a movement of the device, or
assist or complement the scanning. PCT/EP2014/059138 discloses a
mobile profiler which has a scanning unit on a surveying rod (plumb
rod), which is able to be carried or displaced by a user, as a
carrier. The scanning unit has a laser, with the produced laser
beam being rotatable about an axis such that a laser plane is
spanned, the line of intersection of which with the surface to be
surveyed yields the measurement profile of a multiplicity of
measurement points. Furthermore, a GNSS receiver is attached to the
surveying rod for the purposes of determining the position of the
surveying device. Moreover, the surveying device has a camera
module, which is likewise carried by the surveying rod and
optionally has an inertial measurement unit (IMU). With the aid of
these means, position and orientation of the surveying rod are
determined and the position and orientation of e.g. the scanning
unit are determined by the fixed relative position of the units in
relation to one another. Hence, it is possible to generate a point
cloud, which represents the surface of the object to be surveyed,
by scanning with the laser beam, taking account of the relative
position or movement of the surveying device or scanning unit in
relation to the surface. An advantage of a mobile or portable
surface surveying device is that it is easy to change the recording
location and hence it is possible to survey very extended or
elongate surfaces, for example. A disadvantage of the device
disclosed in PCT/EP2014/059138 is that carrying such a device is
cumbersome for the user and the plumb rod is unwieldy; this holds
true all the more, the longer the surveying rod is. At the same
time, it would be desirable for some surveying problems, e.g. the
generation of 3D coordinates of a high object such as a multistory
building or an object situated far above the ground, if the
scanning unit were to be positionable as high as possible or far
above the ground.
[0005] It is therefore an object of the present invention to
provide an improved surface surveying device, preferably of a 3D
scanner or profiler.
[0006] A further object of the present invention lies in the
provision of a mobile surface surveying device, preferably of a 3D
scanner or profiler, which has improved handling by a user.
[0007] A further object of the present invention lies in the
provision of a mobile surface surveying device, preferably of a 3D
scanner or profiler, with improved positionability.
[0008] These objects are achieved by the implementation of the
characterizing features of the independent claims. Features which
develop the invention in an alternative or advantageous manner may
be gathered from the dependent patent claims.
[0009] The subject matter of the invention is a surface surveying
device, preferably embodied as a 3D scanner or profiler, for
determining a multiplicity of 3D coordinates of measurement points
of a surface. Optionally, the surface surveying device is embodied
for generating a 3D point cloud, representing the surface, on the
basis of the 3D coordinates. The surface surveying device has a
scanning unit for optically scanning the surface. The scanning unit
has a transmission unit for emitting optical, coherent and
collimated measurement radiation, preferably laser radiation, a
deflection apparatus for scanning guidance of the measurement
radiation over the surface in at least one deflection direction,
means for registering the relative deflection direction in each
case, and a detector for detecting the measurement radiation
reflected by a respective measurement point. Here, the relative
deflection direction is understood to mean the deflection direction
in which the measurement radiation is emitted in each case by the
guidance of the deflection apparatus, relative to the scanning unit
or to a reference direction, e.g. a zero direction, which relates
to the surface surveying device. Furthermore, the surface surveying
device has means for determining a position and orientation of the
scanning unit, and a control and evaluation unit with a surface
surveying functionality for controlling the scanning unit and for
determining the 3D coordinates of the measurement points on the
basis of the respective deflection direction and a distance value
derived by means of detected measurement radiation. Here, the
distance is a spacing between the surface surveying device or the
scanning unit and the surface or, more precisely, the respective
measurement point on the surface. Moreover, the surface surveying
device has a carrier for carrying the scanning unit and at least
part of the means for determining a position and orientation.
[0010] According to the invention, the carrier is embodied as an
unmanned aerial vehicle which is capable of hovering and comprises
a lead, the latter being connected at one end thereof to the aerial
vehicle and being able to be held at the other end by a user. The
lead is provided for guiding the aerial vehicle in the air by the
user and the position of the aerial vehicle in the air is
predetermined by the effective length of the lead, said length,
preferably, being changeable by the user. Preferably, the alignment
of the aerial vehicle is also predetermined by means of the lead.
Here, the effective length of the lead should be understood to mean
the length which the lead assumes between the aerial vehicle and
the user holding point thereof. The complete length of the lead may
correspond thereto, but it is greater in the case of a changeable
effective length such that, for example, some of the lead may be
rolled up by the user in order to reduce the effective length. By
way of example, the length of the lead is approximately one meter
to a few meters, especially for surveying devices which are
provided for indoors, and up to several ten meters for measurements
outside, where line lengths of up to approximately 80 m-100 m are
also conceivable.
[0011] Thus, according to the invention, part of the surface
surveying device is carried by an aerial vehicle which is capable
of hovering, especially the scanning unit, such that the scanning
unit is positionable in the air, with the position of the aerial
vehicle, and hence of the scanning unit, including the height
thereof above the ground or over the location of the user, being
predetermined by the user by way of the lead. Moreover, the aerial
vehicle is guidable by the user by means of the lead such that the
scanning unit can be brought to a desired location in the air,
through the air in a mobile manner by the user, for example by
virtue of the user running to the ground projection of the desired
location or the vicinity thereof and holding or pulling the lead.
The lead therefore serves as primary or preferential element with
which the user controls the aerial vehicle, at least in respect of
translation. This advantageously renders locations reachable, and
hence renders surfaces measurable, by the scanning unit, in an
improved manner or at all, which are not reachable, or only badly
reachable, using surface surveying devices from the prior art,
which are e.g. securely stationed on the ground or which are
carried by a surveying rod. By way of example, this allows detailed
structures, which are not situated near the ground, as can often be
found in the case of historic structures or buildings, to be
measured in 3D. Moreover, the present invention offers advantages
in respect of the surface measurement of high or sprawling objects,
such as churches, castles, monuments, industrial buildings
(refineries or plant floors), heavy machinery, aircraft or ships,
both inside and outdoors.
[0012] According to the invention, the lead is moreover
electrically conductive. In some embodiments, it serves, in this
case, as a power cable for supplying parts of the surface surveying
device situated in the air with energy, especially the aerial
vehicle (particularly if the latter is motor-driven), and/or the
scanning unit. Alternatively, or additionally, the electrical
conductivity of the guide lead is used for control and/or data
signal transmission such that the lead serves as data or signal
cable from and/or to the parts of the surface surveying device
situated in the air. By way of example, this allows electrical
control signals to be transferable from the user to the aerial
vehicle and/or the scanning unit in a mechanical manner by means of
the lead in addition to the above-described primary control or
guidance, and/or data, especially measurement data such as the
registered deflection direction or distance values or the 3D
coordinates, are transferred from the scanning unit to a user
unit.
[0013] Here, the user unit is part of the surveying device and e.g.
embodied as a portable field controller, which is preferably
connected to the lead which serves as a cable or which,
alternatively, communicates wirelessly with other units of the
surveying device. Alternatively, this is an external user unit such
as a smartphone or tablet. Here, the surface surveying device,
preferably the lead, optionally has an interface (wired such as
e.g. a USB or wireless such as e.g. Bluetooth) for connecting the
external user unit.
[0014] Since the carrier facilitates six degrees of freedom for the
scanning location or the position and orientation of the scanning
unit, the means for determining a position and orientation are
embodied in a manner appropriate for the derivation or
establishment of the six degrees of freedom of the carrier or the
scanning unit. In this case, it is optional, preferably in
embodiments embodied as a profiler, for the means for determining
the position and orientation to be embodied for active
determination of the position and orientation, preferably in a
continuous manner, for the purposes of obtaining position and
orientation values as storable data such that these are available
permanently and, in particular, after completion of the measurement
and translational and/or rotational accelerations or changes in
position and/or orientation of the scanning unit (or of the
measurement object) are measured and the measured accelerations are
taken into account when determining the 3D coordinates of the
object or of the surface. Alternatively, or additionally, the means
are embodied for continuous passive determination of the position
and orientation for the purposes of stabilizing the flight of the
aerial vehicle. In the case of passive determination, the position
and orientation values can therefore be treated like volatile,
non-permanent data, which are used instantaneously for optimizing
the flight behavior of the aerial vehicle and which may be
discarded thereafter.
[0015] Optionally, the means for determining the position and
orientation have, on the carrier side, sensors for continuously
measuring an acceleration and/or rate of rotation and/or magnetic
alignment. By way of example, the means have a 3-axis acceleration
sensor, a 3-axis gyroscope, inclination sensors or an inertial
measurement unit (IMU). Furthermore, within the scope of this
option, the means have at least one camera for continuously
recording an image of an image series within the scope of a
camera-based independent localization and/or receivers for
continuously receiving position reference signals, in particular
GNSS signals and/or pseudolite signals. Moreover, the control and
evaluation unit is embodied for carrying out an algorithm,
preferably a state estimation algorithm, specifically on the basis
of a Kalman filter, for continuously calculating the position and
orientation on the basis both of the continuously established data
from the sensors (i.e., for example, the measured acceleration
values thereof) and from those of the camera and/or signal
receivers, the calculation preferably being carried out in real
time.
[0016] In embodiments in accordance with the option described
above, comprising a camera for the camera-based independent
localization, the algorithm--for the execution of which the control
and evaluation unit is embodied--is embodied to determine position
and orientation of images in the image series on the basis of
resection with the aid of surface points which are registered in at
least two images of the image series. Here, the algorithm
preferably has structure-from-motion (SfM) or SLAM algorithms, or
such routines are part of the algorithm. Optionally, the surface
points are selected for resection by means of feature-extraction
algorithms and/or tracking algorithms.
[0017] In some embodiments, the aerial vehicle is passive, i.e.
without drive or control means. Here, the aerial vehicle is
preferably embodied as a balloon, which, for example, is filled
with helium. The advantage of such embodiments predominantly lies
in a simple design and the low energy consumption, and hence in low
production, operation and servicing costs.
[0018] By contrast, in preferred embodiments the aerial vehicle has
at least one drive means (motor or rotor) and/or control means,
e.g. a rudder or rotor, for actively adapting the position and/or
alignment predetermined by the effective length of the lead.
Preferably, such an active aerial vehicle is embodied as an
aerostat or dirigible, i.e. as aerial vehicle in which the uplift
is at least partly obtained by a gas filling, or as a multicopter,
i.e. an aerial vehicle, in which the uplift is generated by rotors.
With an active aerial vehicle as a carrier, the present invention
offers further advantages. Compared to a completely free-flying and
e.g. radio controlled aerial vehicle as a carrier, i.e. in
which--in complete contrast with a surveying rod as a
carrier--there is no mechanical guidance by the user and no
guidance relatively close to the user, there is the advantage that
the handling or guidance is simplified and more secure such that
even users who are inexperienced with flight control are able to
handle the surveying device and use, e.g. indoors, especially in
relatively small or contorted rooms with a high risk of collision,
is improved or only even made possible.
[0019] Compared to embodiments with a passive aerial vehicle, there
is the advantage that such an active aerial vehicle, depending on
the embodiment, facilitates an active adaptation of the positioning
and/or alignment, which is understood to mean e.g. an alignment of
the scanning unit onto the surface to be surveyed, such that e.g. a
homogeneous or less irregular distribution of the measurement
points or the points of the 3D point cloud is achieved. In other
words, this renders it possible, for example, to align or position
the scanning plane in an optimized manner such that e.g. means for
internal alignment correction of the scanning unit, as are
disclosed in e.g. PCT/EP2014/059138, are rendered unnecessary. Such
means may be provided optionally, especially in the case of a
purely passive aerial vehicle. Moreover, the location of the aerial
vehicle and hence of the scanning unit can advantageously be
changed on a small scale within the scope of the freedom of
movement predetermined by the lead; that is to say, there is an
adaptation of the micro-position, for example to navigate around
obstacles of sight or to make regions perceivable or accessible for
the measurement radiation and hence for the scanning, which regions
are not able to be surveyed in the case of positioning only by
means of the lead (as is only possible in the case of a completely
passive aerial vehicle). By way of example, this renders it
possible to survey corners of a building which are difficult to
access or cave-like small spaces.
[0020] The active adaptation of the positioning and/or alignment is
optionally carried out on the basis of control commands by the
user, wherein the control commands are preferably issued by means
of a user unit, specifically a smartphone or tablet. Here, the
control commands are optionally entered by multi-touch inputs
and/or by moving the user unit on a touch-sensitive user field of
the user unit. Alternatively, or additionally, the user unit has
e.g. a joystick or directional pad. As a further alternative, the
aerial vehicle, and/or the scanning unit too, is/are controlled in
a contactless manner by the user by way of gestures, for the
purposes of which the control and evaluation unit has a gesture
control functionality such that recorded movement images of hand
movements of the user are interpretable as control commands and
corresponding control commands are able to be output to the aerial
vehicle and/or the scanning unit. By way of example, a camera is
arranged on the carrier, e.g. on the lower side of the aerial
vehicle, said camera being aligned in the direction of the user or
user hand and continuously registering images of the hand such
that, for example, a quick hand movement in one direction is
identified as a command for moving the aerial vehicle in this
direction by means of its drive. For the purposes of an improved
identification, the user hand may have an aid in this case, e.g. a
carrier of optical marks. Optionally, control is effected by the
user by virtue of the connection of the lead with the aerial
vehicle being embodied as a control module such that a change in a
state of the lead controlled by the user, in particular the applied
tension and/or direction of tension, renders it possible to output
a control command from the user to the aerial vehicle, preferably
for actively changing the position and/or alignment, and/or to the
scanning unit, in particular for starting and/or terminating a
scanning process.
[0021] Furthermore, the active adaptation of the positioning and/or
alignment is, alternatively or additionally, effected by routines,
programmed into the control and evaluation unit, for
semi-autonomous independent movement of the aerial vehicle
(semi-autonomous to the extent that the independent movement is
always effected within the scope of the indicatory position
prescription by the lead). By way of example, such routines
comprise the movement along a predetermined track, for example in a
manner adapted to the type of object to be surveyed. Thus, for
example, there may be an autonomous rotation of the aerial vehicle
through approximately 360.degree. about the vertical axis in the
case of an internal space which is to be registered completely in a
topographic sense, preferably in the case of embodiments embodied
as a profiler. Furthermore, there is, additionally or
alternatively, an adaptation of positioning and/or alignment on the
basis of control commands from the control and evaluation unit,
which are based on current measurement values, in particular
acceleration and/or distance values, from the sensors of the aerial
vehicle. Thus, the control and evaluation unit is then embodied for
the automated adaptation, which is carried out in reaction to
registered sensor values, e.g. distance values or inclination
values. Thus, for example, there is an automatic adaptation of the
distance to a measurement surface for the purposes of optimizing
the measurement value registration, or collisions with obstacles or
the measurement object are avoided thereby.
[0022] Since one problem when carrying out a surface survey is
that, in principle, very high computational powers are required to
register and process a point cloud of a surface
three-dimensionally, particularly if registered scan lines are
intended to be collated due to a movement of the measurement
system, it is advantageous if this computational power is
"outsourced" "to the ground", i.e., for example, to a user unit
situated by the user. Thus, the raw data of the survey (3D
coordinates or the deflection direction values and distance values
underlying these or the direct detector values underlying the
deflection direction values and distance values) are optionally
transmitted via the lead as a data cable (or, alternatively,
wirelessly by Bluetooth, WLAN, or the like) to the user unit and
these raw data are evaluated by the user unit.
[0023] This data transfer is preferably carried out "on-the-fly",
that is to say still in situ or during the surveying process. Here,
the evaluation optionally comprises the generation of a 3D point
cloud on the basis of the 3D coordinates, with the point cloud
being displayed graphically on a display of the user unit. As a
result, the user already still has the point cloud available as a
measurement result (at least in part or as an approximate point
cloud) in situ or during the measurement value recording managed by
the guided carrier or immediately after the completion thereof. By
way of example, this advantageously also renders possible the use
of measurement results when still in situ, even in the case of an
inspection or survey of the indoor or outdoor region of a building,
for example a graphical display of the entire interior or the outer
covering. Optionally, this also renders it possible for the user to
be able e.g. to directly undertake a first evaluation of the survey
and to be able e.g. to carry out additional surface surveys of
surface regions which emerge as highly relevant or which were
surveyed incorrectly (wherein the measurement results to this end
naturally need not necessarily be present as a 3D point cloud but
may e.g. be output in the form of a table). Alternatively, or
additionally, such an evaluation or assessment is still carried out
in situ in a semi or fully automatic manner by the control and
evaluation unit. By way of example, the surface surveying
functionality is additionally embodied in such a way that regions
which are automatically assessed as being of particular interest
(regions of interest, ROI), as being afflicted by errors or as
having gaps (e.g. due to a scan shadow or a point coverage that is
too low, for example in a very deformed region) are identified in
the set of 3D coordinates or in the corresponding 3D point cloud.
The result of such an identification or assessment is indicated to
the user on the user unit, e.g. by pictures (colored marks, arrows
or the like) in the graphical display of the 3D point cloud or by
text notifications such that the user is appropriately informed and
may be able to react where necessary, by virtue of discarding
either the indication or the notification (if he does not consider
the region or regions to be particularly relevant) or by virtue of
carrying out further surveys, i.e. a second scan, with the scanning
unit for one or more of these ROI. Alternatively or additionally,
ROIs are identified by the user, for the purposes of which he marks
these in the graphical display of the point cloud, e.g. on a
touchscreen of the user unit, and the control and evaluation unit
generates appropriate control commands for the second scanning on
the basis of this user input. As a further alternative, or as a
further addition, there is, in one development, preferably in the
case of embodiments with an independently moving aerial vehicle
(e.g. aerostat, multicopter) as a carrier, the utilization of the
automatic or manual ROI identification in a fully automatic manner
by way of an automatic second scanning of the ROIs, for the
purposes of which, where necessary, the surface surveying device is
directed to a location by the control and evaluation unit within
the scope of the surface surveying functionality developed in this
manner, from which location there is further scanning of the ROIs.
Here, as an option, this fully automatic independent movement of
the aerial vehicle may be carried out completely without guidance
by the user, i.e. the guidance of the aerial vehicle by the user
(by means of the lead) is given up temporarily, i.e. only for a
restricted amount of time and merely within the restricted scope of
the object of the targeted second or additional survey of surface
regions of particular relevance, and the self-mobile aerial
vehicle, from time to time, exhibits autonomous behavior or
autonomous movement or autonomous positioning. By way of example,
the user releases the lead to this end, wherein the lead may be
rolled up by the aerial vehicle. It would also be conceivable for
the lead to be detached from the aerial vehicle and the aerial
vehicle to automatically go to a landing position after completion
of the survey of the ROI or ROIs.
[0024] As a further option, the surface surveying device has a
further surface measuring unit, e.g. an infrared camera and/or
thermal imaging camera, in addition to the scanning unit. Using
such embodiments, it is possible to carry out different measurement
objects in a combined manner or to obtain different types of
information about the surface to be surveyed such that, for example
within the scope of a surface surveying functionality developed
thus, the 3D point cloud (or the 3D coordinates themselves)
generated on the basis of the 3D coordinates of the scanning unit
is (or are) linked with measurement values of the further surface
measuring unit. As a result, the user is provided with a further
advantage in the form of obtaining additional information, for
example in such a way that the graphical display of the 3D point
cloud additionally contains information in respect of the
temperature of the displayed surface.
[0025] As a further option, the aerial vehicle has a reserve energy
source such that, in the case of failure or inadvertent decoupling
of the primary energy source, which e.g. is connected by way of the
lead embodied as a power cable, a completion of the measurement
object or at least a controlled termination is possible.
[0026] The subject matter of the present invention furthermore
relates to a method for determining a multiplicity of 3D
coordinates of measurement points of a surface using a surface
surveying device according to the invention, the method comprising
in particular point-by-point, spatially displaceable, optical
scanning of the measurement points of the surface by means of
optical, coherent and collimated measurement radiation with a
defined deflection direction, in particular laser radiation.
Furthermore, the method comprises deriving distance values on the
basis of detected reflected measurement radiation and determining
3D coordinates on the basis of the distance values and deflection
directions.
[0027] Preferably, a 3D point cloud is generated on the basis of at
least some of the 3D coordinates still during the scanning.
Optionally, there is a graphical output of the generated 3D point
cloud on a display, e.g. a user unit such as a tablet or
smartphone. As a further option there is, as already described
above, an automatic identification of particularly relevant regions
(regions of interest, ROI) of the 3D point cloud, wherein,
specifically, there is a graphical display of the particularly
relevant region or regions on a display and/or there is automatic
second scanning of the particularly relevant region or regions
using the surface surveying device.
[0028] Further subject matter of the present invention relates to a
computer program product, stored on a machine readable medium, or
computer data signal, embodied by an electromagnetic wave,
comprising program code for carrying out the method according to
the invention, particularly if the program is executed in a control
and evaluation unit of a surface surveying device according to the
invention and/or in an external user unit connected thereto.
[0029] Further subject matter of the present invention relates to
the use of an unmanned aerial vehicle which is capable of hovering
and comprises a lead which is provided for guiding the aerial
vehicle in the air by a user, wherein the position of the aerial
vehicle in the air is predetermined by the effective length of the
lead, for carrying a scanning unit according to the invention.
[0030] The surveying device according to the invention and the
method according to the invention are described in more detail
below in a purely exemplary manner on the basis of specific
exemplary embodiments which are schematically illustrated in the
drawings, with further advantages of the invention also being
discussed in detail. In detail:
[0031] FIG. 1a,b show surface surveying devices according to the
prior art;
[0032] FIG. 2a shows a first embodiment of a surface surveying
device according to the invention;
[0033] FIG. 2b shows an example for a 3D point cloud generated by
means of the surface surveying device according to the
invention;
[0034] FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of a surface surveying
device according to the invention; and
[0035] FIG. 4a,b show further embodiments of a surface surveying
device according to the invention.
[0036] FIG. 1a shows a user 100 when scanning a surface of an
object 10, a house in this example, using a stationary surface
surveying device according to the prior art, a terrestrial laser
scanner 101 in this example, with a surface surveying functionality
for 3D surveying of object surfaces of an object 10, according to
the prior art. A 3D point cloud which represents the surface 7 of
the object 10 is generated by such 3D surveying. Here, the laser
scanner 101 comprises a scanning unit, embodied as a scanner unit
104, which is attached to a tripod 103 as a carrier and which emits
a laser beam 14 as optical measurement radiation which is guided in
a scanning manner over the house surface 7 by way of a deflection
apparatus with deflection about two axes such that the measurement
points are scanned (only part of only one of the many successive
scanning lines are depicted in the figure for reasons of
simplicity). Such a laser scanner 101 according to the prior art
renders it possible to register the 3D coordinates of millions of
surface points 15 with a high precision and within a very short
period of time from the location 106 (of the scanning unit) on the
basis of detected reflected measurement radiation and the detected
deflection direction of the emitted measurement radiation.
[0037] A disadvantage herein is that, due to the proximity of the
location 106 to the ground, a relatively large distance must be
selected between house 10 and scanner 101. In the case of a smaller
distance, the viewing or recording angles to the surface points in
the upper region of the house wall are often so inexpedient that
the precision of the 3D point cloud suffers therefrom and/or a very
irregular point grid arises such that the generated 3D point cloud
has a strongly varying point density (scanning lines have a greater
spacing between the measurement points 15 in the region of the
upper part of the house wall than in the region of the lower part
thereof). However, due to structural conditions, e.g. a narrow
street, it is not always possible to have a large distance from the
object 10, or said large distance is disadvantageous, as depicted
in the example, in that objects, such as e.g. the tree 51, are
situated between the location 106 and the object 10, said objects
causing a "scan shadow" 51a, within which no points on the house
wall are registrable. Then, instead of the desired surface points
of the house 10, the generated point cloud comprises points on the
surface of the interfering object 51. Furthermore, it is
disadvantageous, independently of the selected distance, that it is
not even possible to survey the top side of the object 10 from the
location 106 in proximity to the ground, i.e. that the roof 11 of
the house 10 cannot be scanned in the example. Moreover, if the
house wall is not plane (as illustrated) but has e.g. a wall
projection or ledge 57, the upper edge thereof can likewise not be
surveyed from the location 106 in proximity to the ground and the
ledge 57 generates a further scan shadow in the upward direction,
which shadows a further part of the house surface 7.
[0038] FIG. 1b shows a further surface surveying device according
to the prior art, embodied as a mobile profiler 110. The profiler
110 has a surveying rod 113, which serves as a carrier for a
scanning unit 114. The surface surveying device 110, and hence the
location 116 of the scanning unit, is able to be changed by the
user 100 by means of the surveying rod 113; however, this change is
disadvantageously restricted to a horizontal plane. The scanning
unit 114 emits a laser beam 14 which is deflectable about an axis,
approximately vertically in the example, such that, inter alia, a
ground profile of measurement points 15 is registrable along a line
of the ground as surface 7 to be measured. (Alternatively, the
laser beam 14 is swivelable horizontally such that horizontal
profiles are registrable, or else swivelable about an axis with any
other alignment.) As a result of the user 100 running around during
the surveying, a two-dimensional ground profile is successively
generable, wherein, for the purposes of relative linking of the
individual measurement points amongst themselves and hence for the
purposes of generating the 3D point cloud, the surveying device 110
has a camera module 118 in this example, said camera module serving
by means of camera-based independent localization for the 6 DOF
determination of the surveying rod 113 or the scanning unit 114
together with a GNSS antenna 119 and further position or
acceleration sensors (not depicted here). In FIG. 1b, the scanning
unit 114 is integrated into the housing of the module 114.
Furthermore, a controller unit 105 is connected in the example
according to FIG. 1b by means of a cable 112, said controller unit
e.g. serving to control the scanning process. A disadvantage of
such a profiler 110 according to the prior art is that, although
there is an elevated scanning location 116 in comparison with a
device according to FIG. 1a, said scanning location still is not
sufficient for surveying high objects or objects situated high
above the ground. A further disadvantage for the generation of
ground profiles is that the surveying rod 113, as depicted here,
shadows some of the ground (in the case of a completely vertical
alignment of the laser beam 14, the GNSS antenna 119 would
conversely shadow upwardly). Moreover, carrying a long and
top-heavy surveying rod 113 is cumbersome for the user 100.
[0039] FIG. 2a shows a surface surveying device 1 according to the
invention, with a surface surveying functionality for 3D surveying
of surfaces 7 of an object 10. The surface surveying device 1 has a
scanning unit 4 for scanning surfaces by means of measurement
radiation 14, i.e. for generating a 3D scan or 3D profile, said
scanning unit being carried by an unmanned aerial vehicle which is
capable of hovering--a gas filled balloon 3a in this example. Here,
the balloon 3a is fastened to a lead 2 which is held by the user
100. The height at which the balloon 3a hovers is set by the length
of the lead 2 in this case, with the lead 2 being at least slightly
tensioned (wherein the height of hovering naturally also depends on
the height of the user 100 and the arm position, and the gas
filling of the balloon 3a could also be tared so exactly that the
desired height of hovering is maintained by the balloon 3a without
tension in the lead 2). Here, a balloon 3a as purely passive aerial
vehicle offers the advantage of very simple and--apart from
inexpedient interferences by the surroundings, such as strong gusts
of wind outdoors--very well controllable handling by the user 100.
By means of the lead 2, the balloon 3a is able to be held by the
user 100 at a desired height and, by selecting the user's location
53, and at a desired planar position such that the scanning unit 4
is positionable at a desired location 6. Thus, the lead 2 serves
for the balloon 3a to be guided by the user 100, wherein the length
of the lead 2 predetermines the height of the balloon 3a in the air
(the balloon 3a rises as far as allowed by the length of the lead 2
in the tensioned state) and, by the selection of the user location
53, the horizontal position of said balloon, i.e., overall, the
positioning of said balloon in the air. Optionally, the alignment
of the aerial vehicle 3a is also predeterminable by the user 100 by
means of the lead 2, for example by rotating the lead 2.
[0040] Thus, by way of the surveying apparatus 1 according to the
invention, it is very easily possible to change the scanning
location 6 in the three translational degrees of freedom, and
optionally also in the three rotational degrees of freedom, and
hence it is possible to select the location 6 of the scanning unit
4 with far fewer restrictions than when using apparatuses according
to the prior art. As a result of this, it is possible to go around
e.g. viewing obstacles or to register regions which are otherwise
not able to be scanned, such as e.g. the upper edge of the wall
ledge 57. By means of the surveying device 1 according to the
invention, it is also possible to simply survey individual details
of the object 10 to be surveyed in a separate manner and from a
close location, particularly those details which are not situated
with proximity to the ground, e.g. ornaments of the facade in the
case of a building 10. The present invention also offers
advantages, inter alia, in the case of small-area terrain surveys
or when generating small-area terrain topographies or profiles,
which cannot be carried out from a location on the ground and for
which a survey by means of an airplane would require too much
outlay. Likewise, advantages emerge with the surveying device 1
according to the invention for indoor surveys, for example in
buildings with very high room heights such as plant floors or
churches. By way of example, it is thus possible to scan the
interior of a cathedral (particularly advantageously from a central
location 6 not only in relation to the horizontal axis, but also in
relation to the vertical axis, i.e. at the three-dimensional center
of the room) and, in the process, to also survey, in particular,
surfaces of individual elements in a precise and at least largely
complete manner, even at such heights which could not be registered
using apparatuses from the prior art, or only with great outlay, or
the surveying of which using a free-flying aerial vehicle as a
carrier of the surveying unit 4 would be deemed too dangerous.
However, other very large or high objects are also rendered
available for survey in a simplified or improved manner, or even at
all, by using the surveying apparatus 1 according to the invention,
for example ship hulls, heavy machinery or rocket cases, for
example within the scope of quality control, state examinations or
reverse engineering.
[0041] In the present example, the user 100 is able to select the
height, at which the balloon 3a hovers, in such a way that the side
of the house 10 can be scanned without viewing obstacles and with
ideal recording angles. To this end, the balloon 3a, as
illustrated, is positioned by the user 100, e.g. close to the tree
51, about half way up the house and between the house 10 and the
tree 51, by means of the lead 2. Additionally, or alternatively,
the house 10 is surveyed from a higher location 6 so that it is
possible to scan the house roof 11. Thus, the balloon 3a can be
positioned at the desired height by means of the lead 2.
Furthermore, the scanning unit 4 is guided around the house 10 by
means of the lead 2 by the user 100 in one movement 52a (of the
user 100 himself or the movement 52b of the balloon 3a and the
scanning unit 4 emerging from the guidance of the lead) in order
thus to survey the entire object surface 7.
[0042] Here, the surveying device 1 has means for determining a
position and orientation of the scanning unit 4 or the aerial
vehicle 3a. In the example, the means serve for an active
determination, i.e. the position and orientation of the scanning
unit 4 are explicitly determined in such a way that the values
thereof are available as storable data which, for example, are
stored in a permanent memory of a user unit 5. The course of the
location 6 and the orientation of the scanning unit 4 is thus
stored during a continuous active determination and used e.g. for
linking the individual measurement points 15 and hence when
generating the 3D point cloud. The location 6 and the orientation
change e.g. as a result of the aforementioned movements 52a and
52b, but also if the location 6 and/or the alignment of the
scanning unit 4 is not completely stable during a scanning process
due to interfering external influences (wind, inadvertent movements
of the user 100). The means for determining the position and
orientation (roll, pitch, yaw) have in the example, on the part of
the carrier, e.g. at or on the balloon 3a, an inertial measurement
unit (IMU) and a camera for continuous image recording (not
depicted here), wherein the images of the camera serve for the
camera-based independent localization. The means may have a GNSS
antenna in addition, or as an alternative, to the camera. The
control and evaluation unit is embodied here to continuously
determine the position and orientation of the scanning unit 4 or of
the aerial vehicle 3a by means of an algorithm, using the
continuously measured values from the IMU (acceleration
information) and the camera images or the independent localization
(and/or the GNSS signals where necessary). The algorithm is
preferably a state estimator which, for example, is based on a
Kalman filter. Here, use is optionally made of a SLAM (simultaneous
localization and mapping) algorithm. By way of example, there is an
image evaluation in respect of corresponding features or of
homologous image points in at least two images of an image series
of the camera within the scope of the camera-based independent
localization. This is effected by means of matching algorithms such
as SIFT, SURF, BRISK, BRIEF, etc., as a result of which a plurality
of object points which serve for position referencing are set. This
is correspondingly continued for further images in a manner known
to a person skilled in the art. In the case of a video recording as
an image series, correspondences or homologies may be found by
means of a tracking algorithm, e.g. the Kanade-Lucas-Tomasi (KLT)
feature tracker algorithm. Thus, generating an image series means
the generation of image data by continuous (in accordance with a
predetermined temporal or spatial grid) recording of individual
images or video frames. Data from a IMU and, where applicable, from
a GNSS receiver are used additionally here, in the example, for
determining the relative poses between images of the image series.
A refinement of the result may be optionally obtained at the end,
for example by bundle adjustment.
[0043] Alternatively, or additionally, the scanning unit 4 has an
additional target camera, by means of which the alignment or the
target direction of the scanning unit 4 is able to be adjusted or
monitored live on the display of the user unit 5 by means of image
transfer through the cable 2. As an alternative to a lead 2
embodied as a data cable, the scanner unit 4 and the user unit 5
have modules for wireless data transfer, e.g. Wi-Fi or Bluetooth
modules. Additionally, or alternatively, the control and evaluation
unit is completely or partly housed in the scanning unit 4.
[0044] The lead 2 is electrically conductive, i.e. embodied as a
cable which is able to transport electric currents or signals and
which is connected to the scanning unit 4 in this example. On the
side of the user, the cable 2 is connected to the user unit 5
which, as part of the surveying device 1, has a control and
evaluation unit embodied to carry out the surface surveying
functionality. The depicted embodiment offers the advantage that
control commands are transferable to the scanner unit 4 by the user
100 by means of the user unit 5, e.g. a portable computer or field
controller. Furthermore, conversely, data, especially already
recorded 3D point coordinates or the raw data thereof, are
transferable from the scanner unit 4 to the user unit 5. These data
are stored by a data memory of the user unit 5.
[0045] Moreover, the control and evaluation unit is advantageously
configured in such a way that the data are at least in part
evaluated still during the measurement ("on the fly") such that it
is possible, e.g. still during the measurement process, to show an
at least approximate, preliminary or not yet complete 3D point
cloud on a display of the user unit 5 to the user 100. Hence, the
surveying process is able to be monitored and, when necessary,
corrected by the user 100 in real time. Moreover, it is possible
still to evaluate the measurement result in situ and e.g. carry out
one or more additional scans, i.e. a second scanning, of
particularly interesting regions (regions of interest, ROI) of the
surface 7. Examples of ROIs are non-scanned regions or regions with
scanning gaps, e.g. due to a scan shadow, regions with
conspicuously deviating or clearly incorrect measurement data, or
regions which are recorded with a resolution which is relatively
low for the structure (e.g., relatively high point densities are
desirable for forms with many corners and edges, whereas a plane
surface is also scanned to a sufficient extent by low point
densities). In the aforementioned embodiments with an optical
target camera, ROIs are also optionally selectable by the user 100
in advance or following the first time scan on the basis of a
target camera image. Here, the target camera image and the 3D point
cloud can also be shown together, e.g. in superposition, on the
display.
[0046] FIG. 2b shows, in an exemplary manner, the resultant point
cloud 16 which is generated on the basis of the measured 3D
coordinates. The point cloud 16 in this case represents the surface
7 of the house 10 and therefore constitutes an image or a model of
part of the house 10, as can be displayed to the user 100 on e.g. a
display of the user unit 5. Advantageously, the surface 7, i.e. the
one side of the house 10, is registered completely without a scan
shadow by the present invention such that the generated point cloud
16 also represents the entire surface 7. In the example, the
representation contains a marking of a particularly relevant region
(ROI) 17, which was automatically established by the control and
evaluation unit within the scope of a developed surface surveying
functionality or else which was marked manually by the user in the
point cloud graphics. In the example, the marking highlights for
example a region 17 which indicates a damaged position of the house
wall, which was identified by e.g. an uneven surface or a
distribution of the corresponding 3D points which deviates from the
remainder or from the surroundings. There then optionally is second
scanning of this ROI using the surface surveying device 1, for
example with an increased resolution compared to the preceding
scanning. Here, the second scanning is carried out by virtue of the
balloon 3a or the scanning unit 4 being positioned at the
appropriate height and appropriate position by the user 100 by
means of the lead 2. In embodiments with motorized aerial vehicles
3b, 3c (see the following figures), such fine positioning may also
be carried out automatically by the control and evaluation unit in
a manner dependent on the identified ROIs 17 such that, therefore,
the aerial vehicle 3b, 3c independently moves to the suitable
recording location within the scope of the predetermined
positioning, or the scanning unit 4 is independently aligned on the
ROI 17. Here, it is also possible for the position prescription by
the lead to be completely discarded for precisely this purpose of a
second survey of one or more ROIs 17, and so the aerial vehicle 3b,
3c is freely movable on a temporary basis. This would provide
advantages, particularly if the second scanning or the new detailed
scanning of an ROI 17 would not be possible in the case of position
predetermination by the lead 2 because a suitable, or rather
necessary, scanning location 6 cannot be assumed when tethered to
the lead 2.
[0047] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of a surveying device 1
according to the invention with a surface surveying functionality.
In contrast to the previous embodiment, the unmanned aerial vehicle
which is capable of hovering is embodied as an aerostat 3b, i.e. it
comprises drive means (nacelle) which enable independent
propagation, at least in the horizontal direction. The radius of
movement or movement leeway is restricted by the lead 2 in this
case, and so the position or movement of the dirigible 3b, or the
location 6 of the scanner unit 4, is substantially predetermined by
the user 100 by means of the lead 2. Here, the flight direction 56
of the aerostat 3b is controlled by the user 100 by remote control
by means of the user unit 5, wherein the control signals are routed
to the aerostat 3b by way of the lead 2 embodied as power or signal
cable. Here, the control is brought about for example by means of
control elements (control lever, buttons, etc.) found on the
control unit 5, or by movements (tilts, rotations, lateral
movements, etc.) of the control unit 5 itself. Here, in this
context, there optionally also is control by movements of the
control unit 5 or simply of the hand of the user 100, which are
identified by means of a camera on the aerial vehicle 3b such that
the lead 2 need not serve to transfer control signals.
Alternatively, such a camera for recording movements of the control
unit 5 or of the user 100 (or of gestures of the user 100) is
attached to the lead 2. Alternatively or additionally, the
independent movement of the aerostat 3b (which is only possible to
a restricted extent due to the lead 2) takes place
(semi)autonomously in accordance with a flight routine (e.g.
traveling a circle or a 90.degree. rotation) set in advance by the
user 100 or in the control and evaluation unit and/or on the basis
of control signals, which are output on the basis of sensors (in
particular distance sensors) of the aerostat 3b.
[0048] The use of an aerial vehicle with a dedicated drive and/or
control means, such as e.g. a rudder, improves or simplifies the
selection of the surveying location 6 of the surveying unit 4, for
example by virtue of not only a plurality of similar locations 6 or
locations lying close together in the vertical direction being
possible from a single location 53 of the user 100 (by changing the
length of the lead 2), but also a plurality of locations 6 in the
horizontal direction as a result of the independent movement of the
aerostat 3b. In this case, it is still comparatively easy for the
user 100 to control the aerial vehicle 3b. Moreover, surveying
locations 6 which cannot be reached by a purely passive aerial
vehicle such as a balloon are rendered possible. In the example,
the house 10 has structures 55 on the roof, by means of which the
front region of the roof 11 is shadowed when observed from a
location 6 in front of the house, and so a "scan shadow" is present
when using a balloon as a carrier unit. By contrast, when using the
dirigible 3b, it is possible to shift the surveying location 6 a
little in the flight direction 56 into the roof region such that it
is also possible to survey the roof region lying directly behind
the structure 55 when seen from the user or from the front (arrow
14).
[0049] Moreover, the drive elements or active control elements of
the aerostat 3b possibly facilitate improved stability of the
spatial position, and so inadvertent and bothersome changes of the
location 6 can be reduced or prevented. To this end, the means for
determining a position and orientation of the scanning unit 4
preferably facilitate a continuous passive determination, i.e.
deviations or changes of position and orientation are measured and
control signals are output to the drive or control elements on the
basis of these measured values such that the deviations are
compensated and hence a flight stabilization is achieved. To this
end, permanent storage of the position and orientation values is
not necessary, and so the values can be discarded or overwritten
directly after use.
[0050] In a side view, FIG. 4a shows a surface surveying device
according to the invention for 3D surveying of object surfaces 7,
in which the aerial vehicle is embodied as drone, or multicopter
3c, which is capable of hovering and has at least two, preferably
four, rotors 25 which facilitate a flying and hovering movement of
the aerial vehicle 3c. A possible alternative to a multicopter 3c
is an unmanned miniaturized helicopter. According to the invention,
the multicopter 3c is fastened to the lead 2 and moreover guided by
the user 100. Although such an aerial vehicle 3c may, depending on
the embodiment, place higher requirements to the control or
guidance by the user 100 in comparison with an aerostat or even a
balloon according to the embodiments in FIGS. 2a and 3,
respectively, these are reducible, however, as an option by
(semi)autonomous flight capabilities or control of the multicopter
3c, and said requirements still are substantially reduced in
comparison with a completely free-flying, unbound carrier.
Optionally, it is e.g. possible to operate the multicopter 3c as a
virtually passive aerial vehicle, i.e. the drive means serve only
to establish a stable hovering capability on the lead 2 (comparable
to a balloon) and are not used for a targeted independent movement.
Here, the lift by the drive is in any case set in such a way that
the lead 2 is at least slightly tensioned or, phrased differently,
the multicopter 3c would rise higher if the lead 2 were not held by
the user. Here, a safety mechanism may be provided, especially in
the case of embodiments without remote control, said safety
mechanism identifying an (inadvertent) release of the lead 2 and
initiating a sinking of the multicopter 3c. Alternatively, the
drive or the control elements are used for movement of the
multicopter 3c which does not immediately result from the guidance
by the lead 2, i.e. for a change of the micro-position or fine
position within the scope of the macro-position or approximate
position predetermined by the lead 2. Control commands for carrying
out such an independent movement may in this case be output by the
user as described in relation to FIG. 3. By way of example, the
connection of the lead 2 to a multicopter 3c is optionally also
embodied as a control module, and so it is easy to carry out e.g.
control commands by movements or state changes of the lead 2, for
example by virtue of a jerky pull of the lead 2 in a horizontal
direction commanding a movement of the aerial vehicle in precisely
that direction. Here, the change of state of the lead 2 is
registrable by e.g. a force sensor or, optically, by the control
module. Expressed differently, a command may be issued to the
aerial vehicle 3c or the scanning unit 4 by e.g. changing the
tension or the direction of tension of the lead 2. A further
advantage in relation to an unbound surveying apparatus 1 is that
it is possible to configure the aerial vehicle 3c more easily, and
therefore it is possible to produce it more cost-effectively, in
comparison with a completely free flight capability on account of
the lower demands. Compared to the aerostat according to FIG. 3, a
drone or multicopter 3c offers the advantage of a further increased
active movement of the aerial vehicle 3c and hence a further
improved adaptation of the surveying location 6 within the scope of
the position predetermined by the lead 2. As a result, it is also
possible to survey very contorted, irregular or structure-rich
objects with comparatively little outlay or even for the first time
in the entirety thereof.
[0051] In the example according to FIG. 4a, the object whose
surface 7 should be surveyed in three dimensions is a wind energy
installation or wind turbine 20. Since such installations have
large dimensions and, when put up, a large height (in FIG. 4a, the
illustration is too small by comparison for graphical reasons),
they already require increased outlay prior to the assembly when
using surveying apparatuses of the prior art and are hardly still
surveyable from the ground in the fully installed state. In
particular, according to the prior art, highly relevant
installation parts, such as the rotor blades 21, are largely
withdrawn from a precise surface inspection after installation. By
contrast, using the surveying apparatus 1 according to the
invention, a scanning unit 4 can be positioned in relation to the
rotor blades 21 and therefore the latter can be surveyed from an
ideal location 6, for the purposes of which the scanning unit 4 is
advantageously embodied for scanning by deflecting the measurement
beam through two axes. Moreover, the scanning unit 4 is movable
along the respective rotor blade 21, and so, for example, a
multiplicity of highly detailed individual scans or highly precise
individual 3D point clouds are possible, wherein the individual
point clouds may be linked, still in situ, to an overall 3D point
cloud in post-processing or by the control and evaluation unit of
the surveying apparatus 1. Optionally, the control and evaluation
unit in this case has different surveying modes for different
surfaces 7 or objects 20, e.g. one mode for surveying wind energy
installations 20 and one mode for surveying houses 10, wherein,
depending on mode, the scanning unit 4 and/or the aerial vehicle 3c
is/are operated differently, e.g. in respect of a scanning pattern
of the deflection apparatus of the scanning unit 4 or an
independent movement of the multicopter 3c.
[0052] In the example, the surveying device 1 according to the
invention has a further surveying unit 4a in addition to the
measurement-beam-based scanning unit 4. By way of example, this is
a further, identical scanner or profiler unit such that a plurality
of objects 20 or different surfaces 7 of an object are surveyable
in 3D, in particular at the same time, from a location 6, without a
change in position or rotation of the multicopter 3c.
Alternatively, the further surveying unit 4a is a different type of
measuring surveying unit such that a single surveying apparatus 1
is embodied for different measurement objects. Preferably, this
further surveying unit 4a likewise measures in a contactless manner
and is e.g. embodied as an infrared camera or thermal imaging
camera; however, it can also be a tactile surveying unit which e.g.
establishes a conductivity of the surface. This also facilitates
linking of 3D coordinates of a surface, i.e. the surface
information in terms of coordinates which were obtained by the
scanning unit 4, with a different type of surface information in
respect to the same surface, which were measured by the further
surveying unit 4a.
[0053] The energy requirements of an aerial vehicle which is
capable of hovering due to an air flow caused e.g. by the rotation
of the rotors 25 are high when compared to aerial vehicles which
obtain lift as a result of a difference in density (balloon,
aerostat). Therefore, the lead 2 is advantageously embodied as a
power cable, especially in embodiments with a multicopter 3c or a
similar active aerial vehicle, said power cable being embodied for
supplying the multicopter 3c with energy (as an alternative, or in
addition, to an above-described data or control signal
transmission) and being connected to an energy source, a battery 8
in this example, on the ground. In the example, the battery 8 is
carried by the user 100 on his back. "Outsourcing" the energy
supply from the multicopter 3c advantageously facilitates a
significant reduction in the weight of the multicopter 3c, and so
the energy requirements thereof are significantly reduced. At the
same time, the battery 8, and hence the capacity thereof, can be
selected to be much larger (or it is possible to use a more
cost-effective battery 8 with the same capacity, the components of
which need not be selected according to a weight and/or volume
which is as small as possible). Overall, this renders it possible
to obtain a significantly increased maximum flight duration of the
multicopter 3c, and hence a lengthened assignment duration of the
surveying device 1, when compared with embodiments with onboard
batteries or with surveying devices (with freely flying devices)
without lead, and hence without cable, according to the prior
art.
[0054] FIG. 4b shows the use of a surface surveying device 1
according to the invention with a multicopter 3c as carrier for
surveying an interior 30. The effective length of the lead 2, which
once again serves as power cable for connecting the multicopter 3c
to a battery 8, is correspondingly shorter in such an application
than in the example according to FIG. 4a. The surface surveying
device 1 is embodied as a profiler, wherein the scanning unit 4 is
arranged in the multicopter 3c in such a way that the laser beam is
deflected about a horizontal axis. Therefore, it is possible to
scan the room 30 in the complete cross section thereof and generate
a 3D point cloud representing the whole room 30 by the user 100
passing through the room, i.e. by regularly changing his location
53, said 3D point cloud e.g. being shown directly to the user 100
on the user unit 5. Here, an independent movement of the
multicopter 3c is used in an assisting manner, for example a
rotation, preferably a complete rotation, about the z-axis or
vertical axis, or a translation in the xy-plane or horizontal
plane, as a result of which e.g. passing through the room 30 may be
reduced or rendered completely unnecessary, as a result of which,
furthermore or alternatively, the scanning unit 4 may alternatively
be embodied as a scanner unit and hence the surveying device may be
embodied as a scanner 4, i.e. the measurement beam 14 is swivelable
or deflectable about two axes.
[0055] It is understood that these depicted figures only illustrate
possible exemplary embodiment in a schematic manner. According to
the invention, the various approaches can likewise be combined with
one another and with systems and methods for surveying surfaces or
objects and with surveying devices from the prior art.
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